Mother and children die in house fire
A MOTHER and her three children died in a fire at their home in Town Two, Khayelitsha, yesterday.
Twaisa Myataza 36, and her children Nandile, 14, Lindokuhle, 5, and Linamandla, 3, sustained fatal burns while one person, Thobela Maqungo, a brother of Twaisa, was fighting for his life at Khayelitsha Regional Hospital.
Town Two Neighbourhood Watch chairperson Siphiwo Sipili, who works in a building next door to the burnt house, said when he arrived at work at around 4am, there was no fire.
Sipili said at about 4.15am, he heard someone screaming outside and thought she was being robbed.
“I quickly rushed outside and noted a devastating fire next door. Upon my arrival, I tried to call people as I was helping to pull Maqungo out of the window. The fire was already too strong when neighbours and other residents arrived at the house. The fire was out of control,” Sipili said.
He described how he rescued Maqungo from the deadly fire: “He was stuck through the burglar window and screamed for help as the fire burned his legs, bum and back before other residents and I pulled him out.”
A family member, Neliswa Magwala, said she received a call that her cousin’s house was burning.
Magwala said when she arrived, the fire was already out and the childrens’ bodies were lying on the floor behind their mother’s body.
City of Cape Town Fire and Rescue Services spokesperson Jermaine Carelse said the service received a call about the fire at about 4.50am.
“Three fire fighting appliances, a rescue vehicle and 14 staff members were dispatched,” he said. “The fire was extinguished at 5.20am.
The cause of the fire was not yet known.